The Galloway Way can help you achieve your running goals in 2009. Jeff's method will get you to the finish line smiling and injury free. Runners of all abilities and experience levels are encouraged to join the Program!

To learn more about Jeff's programs, including Beach Retreats, E-coaching, and more, go to www.JeffGalloway.com

May 21, 2009

Hello Fellow Runners, Short and sweet for this Memorial Day Weekend. The group will be meeting at 5:50 a.m. for 6 a.m. take off - the usual place. So come on out and bank some miles so you can partake of that holiday barbecue on Sunday and Monday. Mileage will be chef's choice. If you're maintaining, get in your 8-10 miles. Linda will be there. Charlene will be there as Janet will be going lakeside. Don't miss out on your miles and be sure and get them before the promised wet weather drives you indoors. Be sure and communicate with your group leaders and to Linda, whether or not you will be there.

I will not be in TT running this weekend. Truly I will miss you. I will be attending a wedding at 3 o'clock at the Gazebo in the park across from the country club. Okay. We have been discussing the relative virtues of planning a wedding outside in May in Florida. It looked fine until this week. Now, all those alternative plans are being discussed. While I would run in the rain with not too much encouragement, I truly cannot believe I would take my strappy little sandals slogging through wet grass to stand under an umbrella when there would be a perfectly good place to be otherwise. And, of course, this is not my son's wedding, so the incentive to appear to be doing a triathlon in a dress, just isn't there. I am doing the wedding cake for this wedding, and am delivering it to the reception where perhaps, I am thinking, I will not be able to make it to the nuptials as setting up the cake and making sure the catering is in order will take a HUGE amount of time?? What do you think - would that work??

Couldn't leave without reminding one and all: Kickoff is right around the corner. May 31st. 1 p.m. at the Running Center. You can sign up online if it is time for you to, and if you signed up last year in April, it is. There is $5 off for new signs and alumni if you do so before kickoff. And many of you have done just that: Linda and I thank you so much. We truly are looking forward to having a really good next year. Can you believe it is our second year already! I've, of course, remarked more than once that it seems like just a couple of months ago that we were stressing over kickoff, and here it is again!! I'm sensing a pattern here...But Linda and I make a really good team, and we've got this thing down. At least, right now, it seems like it is going along great. By Tuesday, I should pretty much have the nails of my right hand gone. And I want to know how come stress doesn't burn calories - there is no fairness in that. Have a truly wonderful holiday weekend. Remember our friends and loved ones in the armed services and all that they have given for us to be able to gather this Saturday morning and the ones to come.

May 19, 2009

Wasn’t that Magic mile…..magical (there were other words that came to mind, but let’s just leave it at that). The breakfast though was hard to beat. I loved getting together with everyone in the parking lot to eat some INCREDIBLE watermelon, bagels, muffins, OJ and Chocolate milk.

Sadly, I will not be in TT this weekend. I will be going up to the Lake house for the Memorial day weekend. I know that Charlene will be in TT, so the mileage is 8 – 10.

May 13, 2009

Yes, the magic day has arrived. We are doing the magic mile this Saturday. That means that we will not be at the school parking lot. We will meet at the rec center on Whiteway. Why the magic mile? It helps us to determine realistic goals and helps to show progress from our last magic mile.

This is the plan: We will run a warm up by running slowly from the rec center around past the school and to Fowler. We will turn around and run slowly back to the rec center and then turn around and go to the track. This is just like the last time. Once at the track you will need to be timed running around the track four times. We want you to run a little faster than your normal pace. You do not run all out and you do take walk breaks as needed. Jeff Galloway recommends that you walk 30-45 seconds at each quarter mile. If you have a stop watch on your watch, you can time yourself. If you do not have a watch, we can time you in small groups. Each time you go around the track, let the timer know which lap you just completed. Iris and I will keep track of each person’s time and you or we can calculate what you’re predicted pace could be with a 10K, marathon or half-marathon. If this is your first Magic Mile, again you just run a little faster than normal. If you have run the magic mile before, try to beat the last magic mile by 20-30 seconds faster than the previous best time. We will have all the previous times with us in case you forget.

This is not difficult. It is just something different than coming every week and running 10 miles. It can actually be lots of fun and is a good team building experience. After the magic mile you can run more miles as you wish. Iris and I will be in the parking lot of the rec center setting up some goodies for you when you are finished running complete with bagels, juice, fruit, coffee and chocolate milk. We will also have some door prizes! Yes, it will be worth attending and it should be lots of fun.

One thing to keep in mind when running faster is try not to increase your stride and don’t lift you legs up higher. If you do that, you are increasing your chances of injury. Try to shorten your stride and increase the turnover of your legs. If you do this, your legs will not tire as much and you can stay faster longer. Just keep saying to yourself, shorter stride and faster turn over.

Now that the days of heat are about here, please remember that you should reduce your pace to 30 seconds slower for every 5 degrees over 60 degrees when you are doing your regular runs. So, if it is 75 degrees in the morning when you are running your regular runs, you should be running a pace of 1 ½ minutes slower. By doing that, you will still feel like you are running the same pace and getting the same workout, just more safely.

We are looking for one or two group leaders for the beginners group. If you are interested or know of someone who may be interested, please let Iris or Linda know. Your registration fee will be waved as a group leader and you still get all the perks with Runner’s World, singlet, etc. and you will get the wonderful feeling of helping others achieve their goals and help them on their way to their first marathon.

We hope that you will all plan to attend this Saturday. Remember to come to the rec center instead of the school parking lot. If you are coming from Fowler, just turn onto Gillete Rd., left onto Whiteway and the rec center is on the left. Have a great week and don’t forget to sign up online for your registration for the year if you haven’t completed it yet. Online, you get a $5 discount.

Happy Running,

Linda and Iris

Just to clarify, for those who are directionally-challenged and/or have never been to the Rec Center before - turn South onto Gillette from Fowler (that would be a right turn if you are going east on Fowler and a left turn if you are going west on Fowler) - there is also a light at Fowler and Gillette, and Greco school is on the southeast corner of Fowler and Gillette - so the turn is tough to miss :-) the school is a one-story white building, but that time of the morning, its tough to tell.... Dean

May 07, 2009

This weekend in TT, Saturday, 5:50 a.m. The school parking lot behind the TT library. Linda and I will be there, and we'd love for you to be too. You have to show up to play: A couple of weekends ago Charlene and I did a very challenging thing - we actually raced a 15K challenge in Lakeland - the inaugural Road Runners Club of America 10K in Lakeland. It was really really hard. For a few miles we weren't even sure we could actually finish it even though it is my home turf, and Charlene and I and a few other TT runners run the hills and lakesides of Lakeland fairly regularly. Being an inaugural race, there weren't but 200 runners, maybe even less. So, it is very safe to say that there were few runners in our age group in either race, and but a handful in the 15K challenge in both our age groups combined. In a race full of rabbits, I seldom hang around to see if the Nike rep is going to write me a check. But, that little inner voice kept telling me we had given it a good shot and maybe we should hang around - just in case......we had shown up to play, and we played hard AND we walked away with 2 really spiffy looking trophies each for placing 1st, 2nd and 3rd in our age groups. So all I'm saying is: If you want to cross any finish line - you have to show up to play. If you want to run 1 more mile, lose 1 more pound, or just get started or get started again - you really do have to show up to play. If you want to help your buddy up that hill, or across that very last hill before the downhill finish - you have to show up to play. Charlene and I, Linda and Janet are showing up to play on Saturday, and we'll be looking for you. It's hard to get to the start line, after all it is 5:50 a.m.! But once you're there, you'll have some fun getting to that finish. And, who knows, one of these times that Nike rep might be there with his check book. C'mon - you can do it! I will have kickoff flyers with me Saturday. Please ask me for some, and plaster every inch of useable space you can with them. Kickoff, for those of you who have been living on another planet under a pile of rocks for the past month is May 31st. The Running Center Tampa Bay on Dale Mabry, 1 p.m. Our fearless leader, Jeff Galloway, will be speaking live and in person. Major ALERT: The Tampa Trib's very own health and fitness writer, Mary Shedden, will be interviewing Jeff and she will be bringing a photographer. So come on out and look spiffy - we're counting on you. Mary writes a column in the 4 You health and fitness section of the Tampa Trib. that is extremely well read. If you missed out on Marine Corps, it is now closed, Jeff has numbers available on a first come/first serve basis for $118. See Linda's previously sent email. Or, let Linda or I know and we will send you the application and instructions. There are but 75 numbers available, and they are for Galloway members only. If you are truly interested, time is of the essence in getting in on this deal. Have a great Friday! Get your stuff ready for Saturday morning - do it now. Don't forget to hydrate, somehow it managed to become summer this week, so it will probably be toastier than we're used to Saturday. And don't forget Mother's Day! That's on Sunday. And a very happy Mother's Day to all our moms. Iris and Linda

I will be in TT this weekend, I will not be able to stick around since I am having a Mother’s day party at my house in the afternoon and I will need to go and get things ready. Rick won’t be in town this weekend so it is all me to get the house and pool area (that is the hardest part) ready.

Let’s run 8 – 10 miles (whatever the group feels like doing is fine with me). See you all at 5:50am, can’t wait to do a long run (it has been a REALLY long time!!! – almost an entire month)